Downtown Dallas is changing from the type of central business district that rolls up its streets at 6:00pm to a vibrant area with office, residences and hotels. Yes, there are still some older buildings awaiting their remodeling or potential demolition but these properties are becoming the exception and not the rule.

Some of the significant announcements for downtown Dallas include:

One Main Place Transition

Dart Office Building (Old Sanger Harris)

First National Bank Tower

Bryan Tower

Adolphus Tower

One Main Place has recently been purchased by Starwood Hotels and Resorts and KFK Group. They have ambitious plans to improve the thirty three store mid sixties office tower. One Main Place was approximately fifty percent occupied when it was purchase. The new ownership is planning on retaining 600,000 square feet of office space but they are going to convert the top ten floors to a 300+ room Weston Hotel. The project will also have 50,000 square feet of new retail space.

Dart is currently occupying a large 300,000 square foot facility in the heart of downtown Dallas. It is a three story building that was build in the mid sixties for Sanger Harris. The exterior of the building hasn’t been updated and it look much the same as it did when it was originally build.

There are rumors that Dart is in preliminary discussions with Olympic to relocate the the Hartford Building. This is a 175,000 square foot office building that could house DART’s office operations.. Discussions are centered around the redevelopment of the old Sanger Harris building to be a mixed use project consisting of retail, office and apartments. Bringing activity do downtown Dallas at all hours of the day and night.

Downtown Dallas Is Changing For The Better

The First National Bank Tower is a fifty two story high rise building that has recently been purchased by Olympic Property Partners of New York. If only the walls could talk. This building is an iconic downtown Dallas high-rise tower. It was the home of the Dallas Chamber of Commerce for years and where H. L. Hunt operated Hunt Oil. The top of the building was the home of the Dallas Petroleum Club for decades. Time has taken its toll on this landmark building and it is about to be transformed like much of downtown Dallas.

First National Bank Tower will be part of the redevelopment of the old Sanger Harris building. It will be a major undertaking to transform the tower from a 1960’s building to a modern office complex. However the developer is working with the City of Dallas to get a fifty million dollar TIF agreement with the city. The developer will find the remaining costs estimated to be another one hundred million Dollars.

Bryan Tower is a Dallas landmark build by the great Dallas developer Trammell Crow. It is a thirty four story office tower that is going to be converted. The ownership is planning to convert the top floors to residential use and the lower floors will remain as office space.

The Adolphus Tower is going to have a new exterior and remodeled lobby. The building was build in 1954 and it is a 181,000 square foot building consisting of twenty seven floors. The building will be remodeled with the first floor being retail.

Downtown Dallas Is Evolving

It is apparent that the downtown Dallas market is evolving. There are former floors of office buildings that once were empty being converted into residential and hotel uses. The remaining office space that once had functional obsolecence is being updated to modern standards. Overall this is a very exciting time for the Dallas Central Business District and I look for more dramatic announcements to be coming in the future. It is a good time to be in Dallas.

Over the past thirty years of my career I have seen a lot of mistakes that intelligent people make when it comes to leasing office space. These mistakes can be avoided by using a professional office space broker but unfortunatly the tenant has no idea that they are making theses errors.

Furthermore, even after the tenant knows the pitfalls to avoid their lack of experience truely places them at a distinct disadvantage when they are usually negotiating a lease with a seasoned broker that is representing the landlord. The brokers sole task is to make the best possible transaction he can for the landlord and in no way is looking out for the tenant’s financial interests.

So with this in mind lets discuss what I think are the biggest office leasing mistakes an inexperienced Dallas office tenant makes when they are not using professional Dallas tenant representation services:

Timing…..If you wait until you are one hundred and twenty days out for lease expiration or until you start to look for new space you are about to give the landlord a distinct advantage in the negotiation. All searches should start at lease twelve month’s prior to lease expiration or before the tenant requires occupancy.

Only Considering The Rental Expense…..While the cost of the space is important to the bottom line so is the cost of selecting an inferior location that you will occupy for the next five years. Additionally the quality of the building, location and amenities will also have a dramatic effect on the quality of the Tenant’s staff and leasing experience for the company. I find it ironic when a tenant chooses the cheapest building with the lowest rental rate and then they are astonished that the building isn’t maintained as well as a Class A building. It all comes down to money you get what you pay for with office buildings.

Poor Definition Of Leasing Objectives…..Inexperienced tenants usually don’t define the exact requirement that they are looking for when they begin looking for office locations. They start calling numbers from signs and have no idea that the building they are calling will not be able to accommodate their needs. Furthermore they often try to make a square peg fit into a round hole. Not understanding that they will choose the wrong space and be miserable for the next five years. Everything begins with objective planning at the beginning of the process.

Delaying Decisions…..I have seen this hurt so many tenants that because of this error became my clients. The Dallas office market is very volatile. Landlords are not going to wait upon you to make a decision. When a tenant finds the perfect location and then they procrastinate it can be a very negative experience. After spending hours calling signs, surfing the internet, screening 20 brokers calls they find the space and then don’t take action. I cannot explain it but another prospect shows up for the same space and they have better financials and the space is gone. Usually this happens to the tenant that is guilty of not paying attention to timing. Now panic sets in and poor decisions tend to be made.

Not Designating A Leader…..Somebody in the organization needs to be focused on the real estate transaction. They need to be the person accountable for the management of the entire process. After all, this is a very important decision. The office space is in the top five list of things that have the most impact on a business. The leader will help you avoid office leasing mistakes.

Estimating The Wrong Space Size…..Often the square footage requested by a tenant is undersized because they are focused upon cost and not the functionality of the space. This is a major mistake because the tenant soon learns that the space is to small for their business and they are committed to a lease agreement. Obviously they were worried about the expense but now they have hurt their ability to increase income. Don’t let this error happen to you use our office space calculator to give you an idea of the square footage you should require.

Not Getting A Space Plan…..Every lease should have an exhibit with the space plan attached to it. The plan should reflect the work that the landlord will perform and be addresses in the construction work letter. The construction should never be based upon a verbal agreement with the landlord or their broker. Document the agreement into the lease.

Planning For Growth…..Options are the most important thing for a tenant in a lease. There are ways that experienced brokers negotiate expansion options into a lease. If you don’t know how to do this give us a call and we will help you.

No Market Knowledge…..Would you agree that a person that practices the same thing hundreds of times can do a better hub than a person that has done it three or four times. Do you think a person that has been active in the Dallas office market every day for twenty years may possibly have an advantage over a person that leases space and ttys to understand the market once every five years? Market knowledge is gained by being active and that comes from helping Dallas office tenants every day for more years than many of my clients have owned their businesses.

Preparing For Lease Expiration…..What a crazy idea! We haven’t even signed a lease but we are already talking about its expiration. I know it sounds silly but you need to allow enough time at the end of your lease so you don’t break rule number one. You also need to read all the fine print in the lease regarding landlord expectations when the tenant vacates a space. This is one of the many areas where Dallas office market knowledge could be very handy.

Dallas Office Space

Office Dallas is owned by Finch Commercial Realty, Inc. We are a professional Dallas tenant representation firm. We have helped hundreds of office tenants and would like an opportunity to meet you and learn if we can bring value to you and your business like we have for so many others. CONTACT US and lets set up a meeting time.

Dallas Tenant Representation Service

Our services are paid for by the landlord. We work one hundred percent for your interests. Our service is of no expense to you however, not using our service could cost you thousands.

If you choose to not work with us I hope that the ten ideas tips listed above will be beneficial to you as you continue your Dallas office space search.

Our favorite types of leases to work with are Dallas office subleases. There are so many positive reasons that a sublease should be considered by an office tenant but as with all decisions there are potential negative results if everything isn’t considered by the sub-lessee. When a tenant is considering an option to lease space from a particular building it is important that the tenant determine of there are any sublease spaces available in the building prior to contacting the building’s leasing agent. If a tenant has already contacted the building and at a later time discovers a sublease space that is ideal and thirty five percent cheaper than a direct deal they may have eliminated themselves from being approved my the landlord for the Dallas office sublease. Why would this happen? Because, in most leases the landlord restricts the sub-lessor from leasing to anybody that the landlord or their agents are talking to about space in the building or to any other existing tenants within the building. A tenant can avoid this pitfall by working closely with a professional that has years of experience in negotiating Dallas office sublease space. It is important that before a building is contacted that all known sublease options are reviewed and a determination is made to their viability as a future location for the tenant.

Reasons For A Dallas Office Sublease

Why do you want a Dallas office sublease? Here are many of the reasons given by our clients, shorter term lease, significant rental rate reductions, furniture could be included in the deal, telecommunications and network systems could be included in the Dallas office sublease and the space is usually ready for immediate occupancy. All of these are great reasons however the Dallas office sublease client need to never forget two important issues that could have serious negative consequences for their business. First is that a sublease is only as good as the credit of the sub-lesser. If the tenant that the sub-tenant is leasing from goes into default then the sub-tenant has no lease or space and most likely will be given a short notice to move out of the building. Secondly once the negotiation of the sublease is complete the building’s landlord must approve the sublease

Landlord’s Consent Dallas Office Sublease

Most landlords will not even review a sublease until the negotiation between the sub-lessor and the sub-lessee is complete and the sublease is executed. The landlord will then issue a landlord’s consent to sublease and this could be presented within a few days or it could take a few weeks. Once the landlord’s consent is issued the sub-lesser and sub-lessee sign it and the Dallas office sublease is approved after the landlord executes their consent document. All things being considered we love subleases for our clients. Yes there are a few hurtles that need to be jumped over but the money that can be saved is well worth the risk for the right client. In our opinion the only firm that shouldn’t consider a Dallas office sublease is one that has a very short term timeline and needs a Dallas office lease in less than thirty days. If you found this article on Dallas office sublease space of interest you should also read our other informative articles on Dallas office space and Dallas office brokers.

When looking for Dallas Office brokers to represent your interests you need to be aware of the different types of services that brokers can offer to their clients. Brokerage services fall into three main categories, buyers’ agent, seller’s agent or intermediary. It is important that the consumer of brokerages services understands the difference.

Upon first contact with a licensed Texas broker or agent they should provide you with an Agency disclosure form, which is required to be delivered upon first contact with a consumer of the Dallas office brokers prospect. The Texas Real Estate Commission require this form to be presented so that it helps to inform the individual talking with the broker that they need to know what side the broker represents.

Dallas Office Brokers Representation

Many times I speak with a tenant that has been speaking with various Dallas office brokers and they refer to the broker as their broker when in fact the broker is representing the interests of the landlord. “Their Dallas office brokers” responsibility is to the building not to the tenant. They must treat the tenant with respect and be truthful but their ultimate responsibility is to the landlord.

So how does a tenant know if the Dallas office brokers they are working with are looking out for their best outcome? This may sound crazy but the broker they are working with will usually have a signed Tenant Representation Agreement with the tenant indicating that they are obligated to the tenant and what their responsibilities are to the tenant. Without a written contract with broker the tenant really doesn’t have a broker representing them and their broker would be like all the other Dallas office brokers looking out for the interests of the landlord.

Unfortunately some tenants don’t want to sign a contract with a tenant representation broker. We think this is because they don’t understand that if they did they would automatically bring onto their team a dedicated professional that understands that Dallas office market and has complete fiduciary responsibility to them.

Dallas Office Brokers Contract

Sometimes the tenant doesn’t want to sign a contract because of bad experiences they may have had in the past. We believe that it is imperative that when a tenant is looking for Dallas office brokers to represent them that they look for professionals that only specialize in Dallas office tenant representation. By doing so they remove all potential conflicts of interest and they know that their broker is totally focused on only representing tenant’s interests and not any landlord’s. Additionally this type of broker has been immersed in thousands of hours of experience dealing with tenant’s issues and completely understands the concerns and issues a tenant may face in a lease negotiation.

When looking for a broker look for one that has had many years of personal experience assisting Dallas office tenants find good leases for their firms. Some Dallas office brokers are with old firms but they have six months of experience. We think it is better to have a broker with twenty years experience that can draw upon their own experiences to help a tenant navigate the lease negotiation and space selection process.

Dallas Office Space

There are so many choices for the office tenant in Dallas today. With five submarkets to select from for Dallas office space the tenant has a significant number of buildings to choose from in their search. The selection for the actual location is usually not the first step in the process.

When making a list of requirements for Dallas office space the first choice is usually which submarket do you want to office within? Dallas has nine primary submarkets they are, Dallas CBD, Far North Dallas, LBJ Freeway, Oak Lawn/Uptown, Preston Center, Richardson Plano, Las Colinas, East Dallas and North Dallas Parkway. The first decision should be which market offers your firm the amenities that you need for your business.

Dallas Office Space Markets

Once you have decided upon the market then a determination needs to be made regarding the type of office building you would like to occupy. Most Dallas office space is classified into three categories, Class A, Class B and Class C. Class A properties are normally the most expensive, Class B are moderately prices and Class C are the cheapest.

The classification of the Dallas office space you select and the market you choose will have the largest impact on the overall price per square foot of your lease. Once you have a building selected then you need to begin the process of negotiating the terms and conditions of your lease. In most cases this is where the real work begins. It isn’t difficult to find a building with a vacant space and a landlord that wants a new tenant. It takes skill and market knowledge to negotiate a good lease for everybody.

Dallas Office Space Lease Negotiation

Some people think that all that is required to find a good Dallas office space is the ability to locate a building. However wouldn’t it be better to have the knowledge of an expert to assist you in your decision? Having somebody on your team that doesn’t look for Dallas office space once every three or five years but every business day of the year could save you thousands of dollars and help you avoid major mistakes.

That is what we do at Finch Commercial Realty, Inc. for our client’s every day. We are knowledgeable about Dallas office space and we can help you solve your office space search. We start the process when you describe what you need, locate several viable solutions and stay with you until you get the keys to your new office and are completely satisfied.

To us the satisfaction we get from our work is to see our clients moved into their new Dallas office space and they are completely satisfied. Our job isn’t finished until our client is happy. So if you are looking for this type of service you should contact us and give us the opportunity to show you how we can be of service to your growing business.

The Dallas office market is very large and there are many different options for you to choose. We hope you choose to give us a chance to share our twenty five years of experience to help you make a good decision for your business.

If you don't know the necessary square footage for your new office, please use our free office space calculator to determine a good estimation of the square feet you are going to require.

About Us

Kevin Finch is the president of Finch Commercial Realty, Inc. a professional Dallas office tenant representation firm that has been offering office brokerage services to Dallas tenants for fifteen years.

Prior to establishing Finch worked for several national brokerage and development companies. These companies included Trammell Crow Company and Grubb and Ellis.

He earned two undergraduate degrees from SMU and and MBA from Wake Forest University. Additional he has earned several professional designations and is a licensed Texas real estate broker.